What your favourite Cardiff Wine Passport venue says about you
After selling out of passports in just three weeks, we’re already ploughing through our ten-week redemption period for our second ever Cardiff Wine Passport. To celebrate - and to help you pick your next venue - we asked local drinks writer Rachel Hendry to tell share her thoughts on what your favourite Cardiff Wine Passport venue says about you…
Asador44
Nothing says Friday night to you more than an ex-diary Sirloin and a bottle of Rioja Reserva which is why Asador44 has been a frequent fixture in your diary for some years now. And rightly so, the food is sublime, the service is second to none and the atmosphere is, well, what's the Spanish for sexy?
But it’s the Beronia Viura Rioja that caught your eye during your Cardiff Wine Passport visit. A white Rioja?! Tasting like sticky cubes of pineapple and the first bite of a crisp pear—so fruity, so fresh, so fun! And with that glass, the world of Rioja has just expanded beyond your wildest dreams. Whatever next, a Rioja rosado?
Bacareto
You went on holiday to Italy about five years ago and had such a wonderful time you’ve talked about it everyday since. And that’s okay! Venice really is a beautiful city if you know to go at the quieter times of the year, you’re right to say it!
Which is why it was such a thrill when Bacareto opened its doors last year. Finally! Oh to pull up a seat at that blue tiled bar, sip on a velvety smooth glass of Neropasso Biscardo Corvinone - full of the taste of punnets of cherries and the taut skin of a plum - as you wait for your pizzetta to arrive. Madonna was right, Italians really do it better, don’t they?
Bar44
The heart wants what the heart wants and what yours cries out for time and time again, are the Jamon Ibérico croquetas from Bar44. You’re only human, after all.
So when you saw Bar44 was one of the venues for this edition of Cardiff Wine Passport you couldn’t contain yourself.
But it was the elegant label of the Vallemayor Tinto Joven—a Rioja made from unoaked Tempranillo—that took your breath away this time. Soft and smooth, like the white blur of light on an oil painting of a cherry.
So good it made you forget about the existence of those croquetas for a second. But only for a second.
Curado
“It just feels like you could be in Spain, doesn't it?” you whisper to your friend as you pull up a stool at the bar. You don’t know what it is, but there’s something about Curado that makes you feel like you’re on the first night of a mini break.
You went for a glass of the Coviar Albariño and it did not disappoint. It tastes like an abundant orchard, lots of crisp green apple and those little confected pear drops. Like the sun beaming down on you as you walk towards a bustling plaza. Who needs RyanAir when you’ve got Westgate Street?
Daffodil
You’ve recently googled the Welsh version of Hygge and were unsurprised to find Cwtch as the result. Of course! For not only does Wales have an equivalent but, as far as you’re concerned - it’s a much superior one.
Pulling up a chair by the open fire in Daffodil is the definition of cwtch. For what better encompasses cwtchy energy than the light from the flickering fire caressing your face, a glass of raspberry smooth Barbera d’Asti in one hand, and a plate of Caws Cenarth cheese in the other. Iechyd da, it doesn’t get cosier than this.
Nighthawks
Look, they had you at the use of ‘purple quality street’ as a tasting note and you’re not going to apologise for that. Nighthawks has always made wine so fun and friendly, and you were so intrigued, you made it the first wine passport venue on your list.
“A glass of the purple quality street wine”, you said, “and the Nighthawks Classic Cheese Toastie as well, please”. The Azienda Agricola Kerinos Primitivo did not disappoint, with lots of black fruit balanced with a herbaceous depth. You can almost hear the rustle of the quality street tin as you take another sip.
Scaredy Cats
You love to win - there’s no shame in that. And you felt like a #winner when you discovered Scaredy Cats - a cosy, welcoming, all day bar & cafe that serves as the perfect venue to enjoy a board game night with friends.
There’s actually no better pairing for a round of Carcassonne under Scaredy Cats’ twinkly fairy lights than a glass of Gatito Loco Rioja Blanco. The Viura grape provides so much passion fruit, ripe peach and zingy lime fun, that all you have to do is concentrate on bringing your A-game. Easy peasy.
Vermut
You just always have to be a bit different, don’t you? Why settle for a simple glass of wine when you can have one that’s been aromatised and fortified? Well, luckily for you the gang at Vermut were on hand to provide just that - a glass of something very fun and very different.
The Zarro Blanco Vermut was so beautifully perfumed, it’s all you talked about in the office the next day. It tasted like black flecks of vanilla, and the little cubes of citrus peel you find in a hot cross bun, along with soft clouds of cinnamon. Because sometimes, going against the grain really pays off.
By Rachel Hendry
Rachel Hendry is a freelance drinks writer and wine unprofessional whose work features regularly in Pellicle, Glug, CAMRA and many more. She is the brains behind wine newsletter J'adore le Plonk and co-editor for Burum Collective, who recently announced a free publication about hospitality, for hospitality called Service, Please! You can follow Rachel on Twitter at @ratchellle.
